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BOOKS THAT COOK The Reading List Read New must-reads for food lovers. BY KIMBERLY Y. MASIBAY Ham: An Obsession with the Hindquarter With More than 100 Recipes from Around the World by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $29.95) In this witty ode to pork’s most-beloved primal cut, Scarbrough and Weinstein obsess upon ham of every ilk. From rarefi ed dry-cured imports like Culatello di Zibello and Jamón Ibérico to down-home country hams and popular wet-cured varieties like Honey Baked, the authors delight in it all. Start cooking the book with their recipe for Roasted Fresh Ham with a Maple-Spice Glaze. If you’ve had only cured hams, this luscious roast is a revelation. After that, let your appetite guide you where it will: perhaps toward Asia for vinegary Filipino Twice-Cooked Pork, or to Kentucky for Fried Country Ham Steaks with Red-Eye Gravy. There are more than 100 tempting recipes to choose from, and you’re going to want to try them all. Seasonal Fruit Desserts From Orchard, Farm, and Market by Deborah Madison (Broadway Books, $32.50) It’s often said that ripe fruit is the perfect end to a good meal, but if you love dessert, what you really want is that peach plus a little something more. That’s exactly what Deborah Madison serves up in this lovely new book. With restraint, reverence, and a sure hand, she crafts amazing desserts that honor all that’s glorious about in-season fruit. Her tactic is simple: She pairs an exquisite fruit with a fl attering accompaniment or two, like Fuyu persimmon with a few drops of hazel- 26 FINE COOKING • APR/MAY 2010 nut oil, or fragrant strawberries with really good shortbread cookies and basil-infused whipped cream. These are desserts that depend not on baking prowess but rather on the quality of the ingredients. The Forgotten by Darina Allen (Kyle Books, $40) Often called the Julia Child of Ireland, Darina Allen runs the world-renowned Ballymaloe Cookery School, where her Forgotten Skills courses are incredibly popular. This transporting book is a product of those classes, and it will delight anyone who wants to connect with such endangered domestic tasks as churning butter, foraging, and making homemade apple cider. Allen is an astounding teacher, and her enthusiasm for good things and old-fashioned thriftiness is impossible to resist. She shares stories, recipes, tips, and techniques that will inspire you to craft all sorts of staples that these days usually come in packages from the grocery store. Once you taste your own vinegar and bread and cheese, and get into the swing of making them, chances are, you won’t go back to the modern way. At least, that’s Darina Allen’s sincere hope. How to Drink by Victoria Moore (Andrews McMeel, $18.99) If a disappointing cup of coff ee has ever thrown your entire morning off kilter, then you understand the importance of a good drink at the right moment. In this charming Skills of Cooking The Time-Honored Ways Are the Best— Over 700 Recipes Show You Why volume, the British wine critic Victoria Moore thoughtfully explores the place of drinks in our daily rituals. The book is a love letter to all things liquid—a standout among a sea of wine guides and cocktail compendiums. In addition to fantastic recipes for drinks and foods to pair with them, Moore off ers advice on selecting the right beverages for every season and occasion, creating a drinks pantry, and savoring the simple act of sipping. Company Cookbook The Best Sweet and Savory Recipes for Every Occasion The SoNo Baking by John Barricelli (Clarkson Potter, $35) Buy this book, turn straight to page 86, and make the SoNo Brownies. They’re unabashedly dense and fudgy with a double blast of chocolate—chips for sweetness, cocoa for intensity—and you’ll need them to sate your sweet tooth as you peruse the rest of John Barricelli’s repertoire. At his SoNo Baking Company & Café in South Norwalk (SoNo), Connecticut, he produces baked goods that are beyond great, and in this book he off ers more than 100 of his best-loved recipes. They’re all winners, from the simple, rustic Pumpkin Raisin Muffi ns and Buttermilk Scones to his challenging Classic Croissants (so worth it) and otherworldly Chocolate Bavarian Torte. Along the way you’ll glean heaps of excellent advice that will help you bake better than you ever thought you could. Kimberly Y. Masibay is a Fine Cooking contributing editor.